Committee Members
Saleha Kabir
I joined ECHO in 2005 after the birth of my son, who was born with truncus arteriosus. I was given the diagnosis prenatally and met with Jo at one of the fabulous antenatal days they help run at St Thomas' hospital. In the last few years I have become a little more involved with ECHO, helping out on some of the antenatal days myself and joining the committee last year. Hopefully all of our joint experiences, and the added fact that I am an 'old' heart baby myself, will give other parents the courage and confidence that there are people out there who not only care, but actually understand too.
I'd love to hear from any parents who'd like a chat or have any questions about growing up with Fallot's.
sal@echo-evelina.org.uk
Barbara Squires
I'm Barbara Squires and I've been involved with Echo for over 10 years, as a Local Area Contact for Kent and now as a Committee Member!
It's been wonderful to see the Charity go from strength to strength during this time; ECHO was there for me when I needed help and it's so rewarding to be involved with such a great support group and a lovely bunch of people. I've enjoyed helping to organise social events and recently held my own Valentine Ball to raise money for ECHO, which was great fun!
My son, Matthew, is now in his teens and as our concerns are changing over the years, it's good to see ECHO evolving and addressing these too.
barbara@echo-evelina.org.uk
Catriona Moore
I joined ECHO in 2007 shortly after my second daughter, Amy, was diagnosed prenatally with AVSD. It is hard to describe how much of a shock the diagnosis is - when you already have a healthy child, it's easy to become a bit blasé about the real purpose of scans.
Both before and after a heart-baby is born, no matter how good the medical team you are attached to, it can feel like good information is hard to come by. ECHO members I met were a lifeline when it came to understanding not only the medical process but living with your baby day to day.
With a career background in health and social care policy, I became involved with ECHO because I knew what had helped us, and wanted to help provide that support for other people in the same position.
catriona@echo-evelina.org.uk
Matt Wallace - Youth Development
My name is Matt Wallace and together with Alex Bicknell, we look after the ECHO Teen Club!
We help to organise a range of activities and events for young people with heart conditions. These events are fun as well as informative and provides an opportunity to meet other young people with heart conditions. We also organise a Transition Day to help those approaching 16 years of age to become confident in dealing with their conditions and helping them to prepare for entry into the adult cardiology departments.
Please feel free to contact me about upcoming events or if you have any suggestions or concerns you wish to discuss.
matt@echo-teen-club.org.uk